H3 Headphones

At the risk of sounding heretical, has anyone on the forum had a chance to compare the H3's with the new Bose QC20i noise reducing headphones?  If not, can anyone deduce a comparison from the specs?  Here in Australia they are $100 dearer than the H3's but do have a noise-cancelling feature as well as rechargeable batteries although the "box of tricks" near the plug makes them bulky.  Clifft

I own the H3's and have tried the QC20i's, albeit briefly. The H3's are the best headphones I've tested, but that isn't many to be fair. The Bose's are a jack of all trades, and masterful at most.

The H3's if used at home are spectacular, and very comfy. If I was looking for a multi purpose headphone that I could use on the go, I'd pick the QC's.

Put it this way, In my house you will find 1 pair of H3's. On my plane you will find 148 businessmen all wearing QC's! Considering I'll keep these for 20 years or so, the price difference is largely irrelevant.

The ability to change tracks etc using the on cable control is very helpful. One click for stop start, tow for forward a track, three for go back a track. Volume up/down.

If you need/want noise canceling headphones, do not buy the h3s.  I really like mine, but when I fly, I still use a pair of Shure passive noise canceling headphones (basically ear plugs with speakers built in).  I like them because they are small, need no batteries or recharging and sound fine.  The h3s are much better, but not over the the drone of jet engines.

Also, the fancy on wire controls only work with the iphone.  Without an iphone, I think you can turn it off or hang up - not much.

Stan 

Stan, do you have the Shure 215 or 535 model ?

clifft:

At the risk of sounding heretical, has anyone on the forum had a chance to compare the H3's with the new Bose QC20i noise reducing headphones? If not, can anyone deduce a comparison from the specs? Here in Australia they are $100 dearer than the H3's but do have a noise-cancelling feature as well as rechargeable batteries although the "box of tricks" near the plug makes them bulky. Clifft

Hi Cliff - saw the Bose billboard for these this morning and recognised them.

A friend is Sydney is a Bose Believer and having breakfast with him 2 weeks ago I noticed him struggling with the soft plastic ear lug gripes. His feedback was that the sound was great but they were too fiddly and he was thinking of swapping ...

Thanks for the replies. I think I'll go with the H3's. Cliff

elephant:

clifft:

 

At the risk of sounding heretical, has anyone on the forum had a chance to compare the H3's with the new Bose QC20i noise reducing headphones? If not, can anyone deduce a comparison from the specs? Here in Australia they are $100 dearer than the H3's but do have a noise-cancelling feature as well as rechargeable batteries although the "box of tricks" near the plug makes them bulky. Clifft

 

 

Hi Cliff - saw the Bose billboard for these this morning and recognised them.

 

A friend is Sydney is a Bose Believer and having breakfast with him 2 weeks ago I noticed him struggling with the soft plastic ear lug gripes. His feedback was that the sound was great but they were too fiddly and he was thinking of swapping ...

Slightly unrelated, but I have the Bose Bluetooth earpiece (available in left and right ear versions) which I use for mobile phone use whilst driving and out and about.  

It features the same plastic ear lug grips, and I can confirm that they are fiddly to get placed just right, such that the thing doesn't fall out.  Once in place however, it's really quite excellent, both ergonomically and in performance.

I can stream music to it, but it's a tool for a job, and if I wanted noise cancelling headphones I'd get them; otherwise I'd go with something like the H3 for sure.

HTH

John...

ouverture:

Stan, do you have the Shure 215 or 535 model ?

Not sure.  Looking at pictures on the internet, my head phones must pre-date the existing models.  They were "mid-tier" - not the top or the bottom, but more toward the bottom than the top.  I paid between $100 and $200 for them.

Stan